Illusionist of Sorrow
by touhoumanic
Summary: After being tricked by Yukari, Shizuka Fuyushimo must adapt to life in Gensokyo while figuring out the reason Yukari brought her there in the first place. As she delved deeper, though, she will unravel a truth about her and the butler working under Remilia, something that she was made to forget. Sequel to Illusionist of Emptiness


A/N: Well, here it is; the sequel to Illusionist of Emptiness. I know it's a little overdue, but, yeah, still settling into college.

*ahem* anyway, enjoy.

* * *

Chapter 1

* * *

**9 years ago**

* * *

It was raining.

Sitting on a solitary park bench, in the midst of the constant drumroll of the rain, was a small girl. She looked barely nine, and she wore a pitch black dress, which was utterly soaked in rain. She buried her head between her knees, sobbing.

"Ah. So this is where you are."

The girl looked up, first with recognition, then confusion. "Why are you here, Big Sis?"

The woman smiled sadly. "Why else?"

"I didn't know you were friends with Mommy and Daddy," the little girl said.

"No," the woman replied. "but I am your friend." She let that sink in for a moment before asking, "Can I sit there?"

The little girl weakly nodded, wiping the corners of her eyes as the woman plopped herself next to the girl. They sat in silence for a moment before the woman sighs with irritation.

"You know, those relatives of yours aren't very bright," she complained with an exaggerated tone. "I mean, the whole time not one of them realized I was there. Even with this hat. Can you believe that?" she looked down to the girl and patted her on the head. "So don't take anything they say to heart, alright? Your mother and father were good people."

The girl nodded weakly. Although her tears had stopped, her face had not yet lifted. After a while, she spoke again with a soft voice. "Big Sis... can't you bring them back?"

The woman blinked, taken aback by her question. "No. What makes you think that?"

"But aren't you a magician?" the little girl pressed on.

The woman rubbed the back of her head. "I still have my limits, Shizuka," She said. She then let out a bitter chuckle as her expression turned pained. "Though I seem to be very good at thinking that I don't."

Shizuka looked down again, her face turning even sadder. "I see..." she mumbled, her voice shaking again.

The woman scratched her chin, again at a loss as to what to say. Finally, she decided to pat Shizuka's head again. "There there. It'll get better."

Shizuka sniffed. "How do you know?" she asked the woman.

"Well, because..." the woman started to say before she stiffened suddenly. Surprised, Shizuka looked up to see that the woman had an almost fearful look on her face as she looked off to the distance. When she followed her gaze, though, the only thing she could see was an empty park bench amidst the rain.

"What's the matter?" Shizuka asked.

The woman, realizing that Shizuka was watching, turned to her with a reassuring smile on her face. "It's nothing. Don't worry, I'm here." she answered, patting her on the back. "Why don't you run along back home? If you stay out in the rain too long, you'll catch a cold." She then clicked her fingers, making a bouquet of flowers appear out of thin air and handing it over to Shizuka. "Here you go. I noticed a definite lack of flowers back there. I'm sure your parents would have appreciated it."

Shizuka took the bouquet hesitantly, fidgeting. The woman smiled again.

"Yes, Shizuka, I'll be here tomorrow. It'll be a great day for a show after all," she said, answering Shizuka's silent question. "Now, run along before your relatives get really worried."

Shizuka nodded and trotted in the direction of her home. Just before she left, at the edge of the park, she turned around to look at the woman again. She had stood up, again looking off into the empty park bench, her expression serious again.

The next day, Shizuka waited at the park, but there was no performance; the woman never showed up. The day after, her aunt took her in, and she said goodbye to the house she had always lived in.

She never saw the woman again.

* * *

**Present Day**

* * *

Shizuka turned the key to her apartment and entered with a bemused look on her face, shifting through her mail. It was all the same; letters from places she applied to for work. All of them were the same, though their wording differed, and she sighed as she threw the stack at her table.

She went to the kitchen and opened the cupboard, picking out one of the many packs of ramen in there, cursing when she cut her finger on one of the exposed nails. "Not again," she said with an irritated tone as she quickly fetched a band-aid.

She was convinced that the apartment was trying to kill her. After all, the building was one of the oldest and most run-down in town, managed just enough by the landlady to not be torn down. She hated living in this place, and the only reason she stayed in it was because she had no other only thing she hated worse than living in this building was living with her aunt.

After quickly downing her ramen, she sat down and tried to take stock of how much money she had left. It wasn't much; she could barely pay for the rent and food this month, let alone the next year, and that stung. She didn't want to go back to her aunt's house; not after all that she had said when she stormed out. All she needed to do was hold out until next year, and the next round of entrance exams. Of course, she needed to actually live till then, and with the way things are going, she would be out in the streets within the month. She _needed_ a job.

With a tired sigh, she stood back up, remembering that she hadn't checked the phone. There was no point, of course; no one ever called, save for her aunt, but maybe, just maybe, she would get lucky there. But, as expected, there was only one message; most likely from her aunt. As she played it back, though, a woman's voice she did not recognize played through the recording.

"Hello, Miss Fuyushimo? I'm calling regarding the application you sent in the other day. If you are still interested in the job, I'll be around in the area. Give me a call if you wish to set up a meeting"

Shizuka had to listen to the recording once more; she was too dumbfounded. The timing couldn't have been better. For a moment she thought she was dreaming, but the throbbing from her cut finger reminded her that this was real.

Taking a deep breath, Suzuya called the number again. Minutes later, she was rushing off to the restaurant a few streets away.

* * *

"Are you Shizuka? Nice to meet you."

"Likewise," Shizuka said with a rehearsed smile, already trying to get an impression on the woman. She was blonde, almost like a foreigner, but she was japanese, and she wore what looked to be a pretty vivid purple dress.

The woman smiled back at Shizuka. "Would you like to anything to eat?"

"Oh, no, thank you, I'm fine, Miss…" Shizuka trailed off

The woman smiled. "Right, I didn't introduce myself on the phone. My name is Yukari Yakumo," she said. "Please, sit down Shizuka. We have much to discuss."

Shizuka sat down opposite to her, trying to maintain what she thought to be a professional atmosphere, even though her heart was pounding. This might be the only chance she would have to get a job. She couldn't afford to mess it up. She watched as Yukari calmly sipped her drink for a bit before finally deciding to ask, "So, Miss Yakumo, about this job opportunity you were talking about on the phone… you said you need help? As in a maid?"

"In a way," Yukari answered somewhat cryptically. "There won't be much housework involved, I can tell you that. It is somewhat out in a rural area, though."

Shizuka frowned. "Well, if it's that far out of town, I'm afraid I won't be able to commute there easily."

Yukari chuckled. "No need for that. I will provide free room and board. And the food there is quite good."

"That does sound tempting…" Shizuka said slowly. She felt uneasy somehow; something in the way Yukari carried herself was unnerving. "...but Miss Yakumo, I'm only looking for a position for the next year, and -"

"Yes, I quite understand," Yukari interjected. "But you do need a job until then, right?" she paused to let Shizuka answer with a nod. "Well then, how about this; you work for me for the next year. After that, if you want, I can help you get into the university of your choice."

Shizuka was taken aback. "How did you know I was -"

Again, Yukari smiled, and this time, Shizuka couldn't help but shiver. "I've done my research. Well?"

At that point, Shizuka was very much disturbed. Something about Yukari made her afraid. As she was trying to come up with an excuse to leave the interview, her phone rang.

"Oh, I'm sorry, please excuse me for a moment, I need to take this, " Shizuka said, hurrying to pick it up. Unfortunately, it was her aunt.

"Why didn't you pick up sooner?" her aunt asked her with that patronizing voice of hers.

"Ah, I'm sorry, auntie, I was a little busy, you see, and -" she said, intending to end conversation quickly.

"Busy? I bet you're just sitting around in that apartment wasting _my_ money again," her aunt said.

"Now, hang on, that's not fair. I'm actually in an interview right now, and-"

"Then why are you talking to me? Go get that job," her aunt said angrily.

Shizuka bit her lip, trying to tell her aunt the situation without tipping off Yukari. "Well, it's not as simple as that, it's…"

"What do you mean not simple!" her aunt said. "A job is a job, get it through your head." She then heard her aunt sigh. "You really are your parent's child, you know. I -"

Shizuka didn't hear the rest of her aunt's rant; she had already hung up, her face a mask as she gazed at the phone. She then turned back to Yukari.

"I'll take the job," she said, her voice flat. "What do I have to do?"

Yukari reached under the table to pull out a piece of paper that appeared to be a contract. "Just sign here."

Shizuka took the time to carefully read the document. The language seemed a bit archaic, but she understood what was written just fine. Some of the language confused her a tad, but in her current state of mind, she didn't particularly care. She signed the document straight away.

"There," she said, handing the document back to Yukari. "When do I start?"

Yukari gave her another unnerving smile, which for some reason made Shizuka look around. She noticed that the restaurant seemed strangely empty.

"Right away," Yukari said.

And then Shizuka fell, through her seat, through a dark, seemingly bottomless pit filled with floating eyes. She scarcely had time to scream before she was out of the space, landing on a cushion in another unfamiliar room. Bewildered and afraid, she looked around and saw Yukari in front of her, leaning out of what appeared to be a gap in the air, which opened up into the space Shizuka had fallen through. The smile was still on her face.

"Welcome to Gensokyo, Shizuka."


End file.
